The problem is that too many of these companies think that higher profits are more important. However, more and more evidence is showing that employee happiness is a huge reason why companies are able to earn more and be more successful.

This infographic will help you understand how important this correlation really is.

2. Happy employees are 12% more productive

The last point is a perfect segue way into why happier teams are more productive. We’ve established that being happy at work means you like what you do and where you work.

But why does that lead to higher productivity?

At one of our recent weekly “Crush It Calls”, a member of our team mentioned how lucky he feels that he wakes up and gets excited to come into work.

That made me remember how rare that actually is. Most people wake up and dread going into work. So being excited and happy about what you do is one of the best feelings because let’s face it, we spend almost half of our waking lives at work or working.

Enjoying what you do typically makes you want to do more of it. Plus you’ll notice that you find fewer reasons to get distracted.

3. 67% of full-time employees with access to free food at work are “extremely” or “very” happy at their current job

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that free food is one of the top perks that employees desire. It’s one of the major reasons why companies like Google and facebook use it as a way to attract and keep top talent.

Still not convinced that people care about food as a perk? Consider this:

That same study found that 48% of jobseekers weigh company perks, including the availability of snacks, in their decision to work for a company.

If your company isn’t offering free food or snacks, it’s time to consider taking the leap. If you’re looking to get office snack delivery for your team each month, SnackNation can help you get started.

4. Happy salespeople produce 37% greater sales

Maybe you’re a skeptic about all this “people stuff”. You might think that focusing on engagement and happiness is just a new-age fad that millennials like to trumpet, but that it doesn’t really affect your company.

6. Close work friendships boost employee satisfaction by 50%

There have been countless studies done that prove having more friends improves happiness and overall employee satisfaction. So it makes perfect sense that having more friends at work makes us happier too.

If you think about it, you typically spend more time with the people at work than you do with your friends outside of work (and even your spouse, for that matter).

Here are some quick tips on how you and your team can develop better friendships at work:

7. People with a best friend at work are healthier and 7x more likely to engage fully in their work

While employee happiness and engagement are not the same thing, they are generally correlated. It’s pretty rare to see someone who loves walking into the office each day, but finds no value or purpose in their work.

When you have friends at work, you get this feeling that you’re doing something together. You guys are out to accomplish the same goal, and it’s with people you genuinely enjoy being around. In addition, strong social connections help build mental resilience and decrease blood pressure, as outlined in this article by LifeDojo.

Having close friends at work is very similar to being on a sports team. On a sports team, you’re not out there playing and competing for just yourself. You’re playing for the collective group and you want everyone to win the Championship.

Conclusion

Having happy employees is insanely important for the health of your organization. Happier teams work harder, are more productive, and work better together. For some practical ideas on how to make your workday more enjoyable, check out this list of 25 creative ways to help you feel happier at work.

Emil Shour is the Content Manager at SnackNation. His goal? To help companies create better places to work by improving health, inspiring teams to improve together, and making the office a fun and productive environment.

Hi John, I appreciate your honest feedback. I felt the free food stat was a really interesting one and it got a lot of attention in the original USA Today article. Does your office currently provide food or snacks for the team?

Great article.
Should be a must read for all employers. Happy team is noticed by everyone from the janitors to the CEO. It then flows into the population and consumers.
It’s called growth and the investors want to be associated with that too.

Employee happiness is key to getting the best out of people! A happy employee is a productive employee and the facts shown here display that for us all to see. Make employee happiness a workplace goal and the rest — engagement, productivity, success — will follow shortly behind. I recently read that of the employees who thought about searching for a new job in the past year, 59 percent don’t feel adequately appreciated at work. A simple “thank you” can therefore go a long way. We spend more than half of our waking hours at work, so establishing a workplace culture that aims to motivate, support, and inspire employees is essential to creating a happy workforce.

About SnackNation

SnackNation is a healthy office snack delivery service that makes healthy snacking fun, life more productive, and workplaces awesome. We provide a monthly, curated selection of healthy snacks from the hottest, most innovative natural food brands in the industry, giving our members a hassle-free experience and delivering joy to their offices.